Movie Reviews

Brando's only excursion into directing

Mr. Contrarian | Seattle, WA United States | 03/31/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love this film, even though it might not deserve all the 5 stars I have given it. The DVD versions are (so far, up to Spring 2010) really poor transfers. Plus, it is not a movie for all tastes, because it was one of the first attempts to bring moral ambiguity, and psychological drama, to the western genre.

The film works extremely well on two levels, but is weak in another. The central plot is that Malden betrays Brando when they were both bank robbers. Malden uses the stolen money to "go straight," while Brando goes to prison. The clash between Brando and Malden, once Brando is out of prison, is tensely done and expertly acted. We might sympathize somewhat with Brando's character, because he is hot headed, passionate and vulnerable; but we know he is still a criminal. Despite being sheriff of Monterey, Malden's character has not changed at all. He still has a criminal mind but now wears the badge of legitimacy. There are no pure men (the women are flawed too) in this film. Their consistently wicked behavior, compared to the beautiful Monterey Peninsula setting, makes us wonder about the goodness of the human heart. This is the philosophical heart of the film and was striking even on my first viewing. The weakness of the film is the ending. It feels phony. In fact, the legend is that the ending was changed, on orders from the studio, to make it happy. I say, So What? Red River had a phony ending and it is one of the absolute classic westerns.

The fine acting by the two co-stars is alone worth viewing this film. Add the beautiful cinematography and we have a slightly flawed yet ground breaking western. The acting is excellent. How could it be otherwise? We have here Karl Malden, Slim Pickens, and Ben Johnson. Three of the most solid actors of their generation, in addition to Marlon Brando. Watch this film and be prepared for a surprise -- Brando could direct as well as act!

WARNING: Do not buy a DVD of this movie. All are poor in quality, because the film is now in the public domain. Even some of the VHS releases are poor. However, excellent VHS versions are available (look for editions released under the Paramount label). If you have a laserdisc player, try to find the widescreen version. The full screen version has more viewing area on the top and bottom, but the framing is better on the widescreen edition."

Marlon-acts & directs!!

Charles Mymit | 04/02/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One-Eyed jacks is a western starring Brando &directed by him aswell. Story line is good-Brando's friend Karl Malden plays hisrole to a tee!Of course Brando is Brando-top acting! Can't go wrong with this flick."

GREAT MOVIE -- DIGIVIEW WIDESCREEN 16:9 RATIO

P. Moodie | Australia | 05/07/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"We all know that this movie, One Eyed Jacks is a brilliant movie with Marlon Brando. And it is directed by the man himself. The entire movie, storyline and acting is still way ahead of many a today's movie. I have seen many a version of this dvd and the quality has been terrible,unwatchable. However, the DIGIVIEW version of ''One Eyed Jacks'' is the best I have ever seen. The standard of the ''natural''colour is very high. Even on my 46'' Toshiba LCD TV, the quality is still very high. It is still lacking sharpness to detail compared to the best digitally re-mastered movies. This version is DEFINITELY WIDESCREEN with a 16:9 ratio (1:78:1) the same ratio as today's widescreen TV'S. (others have commented on this fact and it's quality, and their comments of the DIGIVIEW version are accurate). I have given it four stars because:- (1)a fantastic Marlon Brando Movie, still superior to many of today's movies (2) The high standard of ''natural''colour. (3) DIGIVIEW WIDESCREEN 16:9 RATIO. I cannot give it five stars because it is still lacking in sharpness of detail viewed on a 46'' Toshiba LCD TV. I am looking forward to a first class re-mastering version of this dvd. Surely with Marlon Brando's popularity, someone should do it soon."